A Walk Across America

In the early 1970s at the tail end of the peace and love hippie movement, with turmoil bubbling up around the country, Peter Jenkins decides he needs a life changing journey. Peter is a recent college graduate and divorcee who wants to leave the US because he believes it is in shambles until an older friend tells him, "if you want to leave, go right ahead, but first you sure as shootin' ought to give this country a chance!". That's when Peter decides to take his Alaskan Malamute, Cooper, and himself on a soul searching quest for what America and Americans are really like by walking across America.

The journey starts in Alfred, NY and the book ends when he reaches the Gulf of Mexico, so the title is a bit misleading. I guess "A Walk Down the Eastern Part of the United States" doesn't sell as well. He eventually finishes by walking to California, but we do not hear about it in this book. A journey that begins with Peter trying to figure out if America has any heart quickly becomes introverted. Peter begins to feel this whole journey is a spiritual and religious quest. In the end aren't we all looking for God or at least his replacement?

Peter finds both a spiritual answer for himself and discovers that Americans are warm and welcoming from West Virginia to Alabama. We meet some fun characters throughout the book including a mountain man and a soulful black family who adopt Peter as one of their own. Cooper was perhaps my favorite character in the book. A dog is always a great way to add fun and heart to any story, but *warning* like in most books with dogs, he dies! Tragic.

Although the writing is amateur, the story is compelling. It often feels like Peter lightly taps places and people on the shoulder without fully embracing his experience with them in his writing. He often says how thankful he is to people and how great places are, but I often wish he'd give more than just a passing nod. Even when he devoted chapters to one place or person he stayed with, his writing felt like it was lacking feeling and depth. I wanted more meat.

The first half of the book I felt was equal parts about the hiking/camping and the people/places he went. Towards the end of the book, however, it changed to be more about the people. They were both interesting, but personally I was more interested in the hike, nature, and Cooper.

This book does speak to more than just the lost hippie child. I loved that he seriously used phrases like 'groovy' in his writing, but even with those tacked on, this reaches more than just the flower child generation. It's a fun read and a true story of a man learning about his American routes and discovering that his suppositions about Americans were wrong.

Grief and Loss Fall Flat...You win again July

It has not been a good month for books in the Miss Elizabeth household. I've been traveling recently, so I decided to stir it up with a book on CD. I chose "The Year of Pleasures" by Elizabeth Berg. I'm a sucker for a cover (damn you shallowness!), and thought the book sounded sweet plus it was a short listen. Well I liked this better than some books, but still it did not phase me.

The book is about a grieving widow in her early 50s. She just lost her husband who was the love of her life and has now uprooted herself and moved to...Illinois? Anywho, she makes new friends, finds old friends, grieves her husband, and struggles with how to move on. The title is mentioned within the book by a character who says when she lost her daughter, she spent a year finding one thing a day that made her happy, something she enjoyed doing no matter how small. I love that idea, but I don't think the book earned this title.

What I think the author was going for was one of those, 'we just lost something dear, girls stick together, best friend, women' books. In my opinion, it didn't hit the mark.

The author tried too hard to describe simplicities like trees, shops, topography and after a while, it just felt phony like the writing of any student trying to be poetic. Stop with the figurative language and get to the meat! God knows I'm guilty of some of this behavior in my own writing, but I expect more from an author.

Something that annoyed me throughout the book was the main character, Betta's, attitude towards today's generations and technology. She stuck her nose up and was exasperated with any form of new fangeled technology. Whenever this was mentioned, she usually associated younger generations with the inability to love life beyond the internet. As a twenty-something, I resent the implication that I'm unable to socialize, enjoy just sitting, or the beauty of nature. I understand the point she makes about many people being dependant on technology and children missing out on activities because they're stuck in front of a screen, but sweeping generalizations are annoying and never apply to all.

The subject of the book, loss, grief, loneliness, is one that many can relate to and will resonate with most audiences, but I didn't feel it went anywhere new. It felt cliche. I did appreciate the underlying values of friendship and life even if I wasn't overly thrilled with the delivery. One line that hit home with me was, "how necessary the near presence of others in keeping me civilized and sane". For anyone who has ever lived alone or holed themself up for a period of time I think they can relate.

Again, this book did not strike a chord in me. The characters were underdeveloped and the plot points fell through. The author tried for deep and meaningful, Steel Magnolias-esque, but it didn't reach that level because I never felt a connection with the main character. There's not much more to be said about this book. Find something with more heart.

More Ordinary than Curious

I recently attended the American Library Association's annual conference in New Orleans where I had the pleasure of meeting and receiving complimentary copies of authors' books. One such book was "The Transformation of Bartholomew Fortuno" by Ellen Bryson. This is a book I saw on a B&N shelf not too long ago and thought it looked interesting. Well what with me thinking the book looked good, and having met the author, I was all ready to enjoy this novel....Anytime now...Crap.

I didn't.

The novel is about Barnum's Museum of Curiosities in New York City post Civil War (1865+ for you Canadians). The main character, Bartholomew Fortuno, is the world's thinnest man. We meet and see the daily lives of several other "curiosities", such as the fat lady, the elastic man, and a strong man, but one day a mysterious woman is added to the museum and Barty's world is tipped upside down. I applaud Ms Bryson for getting her first novel published. The idea is original and interesting, but it fell flat, like her characters.

The characters and plot were 2-D. They didn't jump off the page at you and I didn't feel there was anything or anyone to grab onto. The author made attempts at going beyond surface level, but I'm sorry to say her attempts failed. The main character, Barty, is annoying. He's like that whinny kid in class with no backbone. He knows all the rules by heart and isn't afraid to let everyone know it. I never warmed up to him and found his personality agitating.

The "mysteries" within the novel were not riveting. To say the least I was not turning the pages to figure out what happened. Had I not felt obligated to finish the book I would have put it down ages ago and been better for it. Nothing in the book moved me. Pieces of the plot felt loosely strung together and the "great reveals" were lacking. I wasn't surprised or intrigued.

I found nothing transforming about Bartholomew Fortuno. The author should have explored her characters more, made their relationships deeper, and their perspectives more pronounced and weighty. The curiosities are people who are outcast by the rest of society, but find a home in the Museum among others like them. This is a perspective that reaches all of us in one way or another, but I felt alienated from her characters and I don't feel Bryson tried to make the connection between her audience and the characters. Bryson tried to probe Barty's philosophy on the curiosities and how their presence in the world was a tool, but she never fully latched on to it.

After reading this book, I've decided to take Nancy Pearl's advice: if after 30-50 pages the book doesn't grab or interest you, just put it down. The world is full of books worth reading and life is too short to waste your time on an uninteresting read.

Underdogs and Evolution in Football

I'm not much of a sports person. Sure I enjoy watching football, basketball, baseball when I'm at a bar or at an actual game, but it's not something I seek out and it's not an area I have a lot of knowledge of. My parents shoved me into sports, so I've played most major sports and still enjoy playing when I get the chance. Well I didn't know what to think when my boyfriend told me that "The Blind Side", the book, was more about the football market and economy of the NFL than the gooshy underdog story. That sounds...out of my comfort level. But I thought, heck why not!

Well if you've seen the movie, then you understand the gist of the book. Poor, unrecognized, unloved, black high school boy gets recognized and finds his place in the world. It's a great story. Well that's what about half to two thirds of this book is about. I loved reading about Michael Oher and his adopted family the Tuohys. The writing in this book is accessible and the story is anything but dry, which (I must admit) I often find non-fiction to be. For the most part, that part of the book and the movie are very similar with a few differences spotted throughout.

The other half to two thirds of the book are about football. How the game has changed the role of the players and strategies for drafting and playing. The subtitle of the book is "evolution of a game", so Michael's story is only part of the book. It just happens that he lives up to the role of the elusive right side offensive tackle (yes this book taught me some football lingo though I really didn't retain much of it), which happens to be the position that Michael Lewis places emphasis on in the book. The first chapter of the book had my head spinning. What is all this jargon? Where does which player play? There is strategy to this brute of a sport? After those ten pages or so I almost put it down, but I'm happy I continued with it. I was naive and I confess this book helped me see that there's a reason these men get paid as much as they do. There lives are often cut short due to the mass amounts of physical damage they do to their bodies during their years playing the game. These are people who were born to play the sport because of their physical make up and their athletic ability. The offensive tackle cannot just be some sumo wrestler sized man, he must also be light on his feet and fast. Those are rare qualities in so large a man.

A point in the story that somewhat bothers me is the adopting of an underprivileged child for his athletic ability. The Tuohy family did not adopt Michael merely for his skills in sports, I know that, but they do discuss taking on the task again. I am all for helping people get educated and rise up to their full potential, but it seemed like the Tuohys became interested in only helping those with athletic ability. What about the others? Sure sports are great, but what about those kids who are intelligent and can make a good life for themselves, but they're stuck in the wrong circumstances? Ok maybe that is cutting off more than they can chew. At least they are trying to help those who need it instead of just overlooking the issue. There are programs out there that only want to help kids with certain grade point averages, so why not have programs that want to help student athletes. I still have some quandaries with it, but it's better than nothing.

Lewis did an eloquent job of telling an 'against all odds' story along with exploring the evolution of the game of football. I'll admit I enjoyed Michael's story more than the chapters about how strategy changed and reassessing the importance of certain positions. For the most part I thought the story read more like a novel than a non-fiction. I'm happy I stepped out of my comfort zone for this book. If you're into football, even slightly, you should consider giving this book a read. Michael Oher and the Tuohy family are lovable and Lewis does a fine job of explaining the game of football and presenting a number of view points and sources for his story. He made it accessible to the avid football fan along with the novice. Cheers to you Mr. Lewis for bringing outsiders into the world of football and going beyond just the dark horse story to create a near seamless conglomerate.

I Vant to see BLOOD!!

Hello, my name is Miss Elizabeth, and I am addicted to the Sookie Stackhouse series. It all started a couple summers ago when I decided to give the first one a shot after seeing True Blood, the HBO series that's based off of Charlaine Harris's books. After that first sinful taste of the Southern vampire series, I was hooked. Soon I was making weekly runs to Target to pick up the next book in the series and finally making frenzied requests at the library for the newest addition. Then they ran out. Where did all the Stackhouse books go? That's when I went cold turkey. But Harris finally published another one! I jumped off that wagon pretty quick, let me tell you!

"Dead Reckoning" is the 11th book in the Southern Vamp series and yet again, Miss Stackhouse has enemies trying to kill her and secrets to be revealed. I cannot tell you anymore than that or risk giving away all sorts of plots in the other books if you haven't read them. I gotta say, Sookie is not one of my favorite characters, but I do love these books. There's always something happening and more supernatural creatures waiting around the corner. Her telepathy makes her an asset to the supes around her, but her network of vampire "friends" and other protectors keeps her safe, or so she thinks. She is a woman who can handle her problems and tries her damnedest to keep her life under control while exterior forces push her into the line of fire. I appreciate her independence and her no-nonsense attitude, but when I think of her, I think of Anna Paquin (the actress who plays Sookie in True Blood) and that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I know that's silly, but I just can't help it. The other characters in these books are just as fun as Sookie, if not more so. Pam, a vampire and right hand woman of Eric the viking vampire (yum), is one of my favorite characters. She's an oxymoron in the way she dresses and the way she acts. She's a bad ass Alice in Wonderland who thinks nothing of killing and has a dry, black sense of humor. Then of course Eric, viking vampire, is a hot piece who is a vampire through and through. He is typically very cold, pun intended, and keeps his hand close to his chest, but that impenetrable personality paired with his charm makes him irresistible.

Sure this is not a masterpiece of literature, but it is a FUN read!! One of the nice things about this series is that each book leads right into the next without any hassle. It's assumed you know the past stories, so chapters aren't spent catching the reader up on what's been going down. There are always new developments, but plot lines run over between books, or even come back a few books later. When I think of traditional summer reading, I think of mindless, easy books and I must say this one fits the ticket. Sure you may have to recall details from past books in the series, but there's no thinking involved. The only problem is you may find yourself becoming antisocial because all you want to do is read. Who needs friends anyways?

I truly love this series. It's my guilty reading pleasure. Admitting the problem is one step closer to recovery, right? Well if reading about vampires, fairies, werewolves, and a telepath is wrong, then I don't want to be right! Cut me a line of that and keep that wagon away. Mama's on a high.

Antisocial Never Looked So Good

I gave into the buzz. After at least a year of hearing how awesome the books in the late Stieg Larsson's Millennium series are I relented and picked up the first book "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". As silly as it is, I usually hesitate when it comes to bestsellers. My snobby bibliophile comes out and up goes my nose. "These plebeians don't know what good writing really is. They're all just drawn to the latest sexed book, thrown together in a rush and hardly edited [all said in my Brahman accent]." Who is this monster? O yeah, it's me. Time to set aside my ugly self and try this international bestseller.

Well if you're one of the few who have yet to read this book, let me give you a drive-by summary. Mikael Blomkvist, a financial investigatory journalist, was recently convicted of libel. Lisbeth Salandar is a misunderstood, antisocial young woman who has a penchant for investigating/researching people and a desire to solve her own problems. Mikael is hired by the old CEO of a huge corporation to solve a mystery and soon Salandar and Mikael partner up to figure this thing out. There is so much more to the story and so many other angles, but I don't want to give anything away. The weaving together of stories is intricate. The main characters are interesting, especially Salandar, a girl so unlike anyone I've ever met or would even look twice at.

Overall it was a fun book. Fantastic beach read! The writing is good, and the story is rich. Again, Salandar is a compelling character, who I want to see more from. You never know what this character will do or if you'll ever hear her full story, which makes me want to see more from her. After all the hype, I was a smidgen disappointed. Let me stress, ONLY A SMIDGEN. Still a great read, especially as far as 'who done its' go. I guess I just expected a lot because I heard so much about the book. It's not a book I will rave about to others or name as a favorite, but I see why people really like it and all in all I liked the book and will probably end up reading the remaining two in the series. Who knows, maybe I will write love blogs to "The Girl Who Played with Fire" and "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest". Only time will tell.

The Foreign-ness of Simplicity

Dolce far niente, sweet to do nothing. What an Italian saying. How sweet it is to do nothing. This is the lifestyle that Frances Mayes immerses herself in in her book, "Under the Tuscan Sun". Italians live in a way that is so foreign to we Americans. Three hour breaks in the middle of the day? Only having seasonal ingredients? Workers who don't show up when they say they will? Having a mini farm in your backyard? What are all these strange concepts? Foreign, yes perhaps, but after reading Mayes book, I can't think of anything that sounds better.

If you have seen the movie, "Under the Tuscan Sun", please put it out of your mind. Yes there are similarities, but the movie is a different beast from the book. The book is a work of travel nonfiction about Mayes and her current husband buying and refurbishing an old, neglected house and the few acres that come along with it. Mayes is a lover of food and cooking, so there are also chapters about her favorite recipes and she talks about the exquisite meals and wines she makes and eats. The book is not a romance, unless you consider the love of a house and place romantic.

I enjoyed the first half of the book describing the work done on the house. It was invigorating to hear about how it went from point A to point B and all of the time and love that Frances and her hubby put into this project. But it was not only the house that had to be updated. The land had olive, fig, and pear trees on it, a wall that needed to be finished, and pruning and planting to be done. This is a lifestyle where living is encouraged, and simplicity has never seemed so complicated. All you do is sit and eat for three hours? Pears and gorgonzola are a stunning combination? It's so simple! I found myself getting bored after about the first half of the book once most of the work on the house was complete. After that, many of the chapters were about places that Frances and her husband visited. Sure some of it was interesting, but I was into the lifestyle of the house and the locals.

Overall, this book made me long for Italy, for a country house in a foreign land where I can make friends with locals, grow food that I can pick off the trees and eat, take on a house and win. It made me want to rediscover life. Frances talks about how different her life is in San Francisco, where she lives most of the year, and Tuscany, where she spends her winter and summer breaks. She talks about how going to Bramasole, the Tuscan house, is like going home. It is like becoming the better version of yourself. I want that.

This is a good read for the most part. It makes you want to get up and do things, rediscover life, cooking, gardening, renovate something, anything! I loved the culture that was unfurled throughout Frances's book, but there were places that I felt she blathered on, and I lost interest. If you love traveling and different cultures, give it a read. Don't get too carried away, however. You wouldn't want to end up with a house in a foreign countryside, or would you?